2016 Kenyan Premier League
# 2016 Kenyan Premier League

The 2016 Kenyan Premier League (known as the SportPesa Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 13th season of the Kenyan Premier League since it began in 2003, and the 53rd season of top-division football in Kenya since 1963. It began on 13 February and ended on 19 November. Tusker won their eleventh league title, earning a place in the preliminary round of the 2017 CAF Champions League. Ulinzi Stars earned a place in the preliminary round of the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup as runners-up of the 2016 FKF President's Cup, which was also won by Tusker. The two teams will face each other at the 2017 Kenyan Super Cup.

A total of 16 teams competed for the Kenyan Premier League, of which 14 returned from the 2015 season. Posta Rangers and Kakamega Homeboyz were promoted from the second-tier FKF Premier League after spending three and two seasons away from the top flight, respectively.

## Changes from last season

### Relegated from Premier League

* Kenya Commercial Bank
* Nakuru AllStars

### Promoted from FKF Premier League

* Kakamega Homeboyz
* Posta Rangers

## Teams

Seven of the participating teams are based in the capital, Nairobi, while Bandari is the only team based at the Coast.

### Stadia and locations

| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
| - | - | - | - |
| A.F.C. Leopards | Nairobi | Nyayo National Stadium | 30,000 |
| Bandari | Mombasa | Mombasa Municipal Stadium | 10,000 |
| Chemelil Sugar | Chemelil | Chemelil Sports Complex | 5,000 |
| Gor Mahia | Nairobi | Nairobi City Stadium | 15,000 |
| Kakamega Homeboyz | Kakamega | Bukhungu Stadium | 10,000 |
| Mathare United | Nairobi | Kasarani Stadium | 60,000 |
| Muhoroni Youth | Muhoroni | Muhoroni Stadium | 5,000 |
| Nairobi City Stars | Nairobi | Hope Centre | 5,000 |
| Posta Rangers | Eldoret | Kipchoge Keino Stadium | 10,000 |
| Sofapaka | Nairobi | Nyayo National Stadium | 30,000 |
| Sony Sugar | Awendo | Green Stadium | 5,000 |
| Thika United | Thika | Thika Municipal Stadium | 5,000 |
| Tusker | Nairobi | Kasarani Stadium | 60,000 |
| Ulinzi Stars | Nakuru | Afraha Stadium | 8,200 |
| Ushuru | Nairobi | Public Service Grounds | 5,000 |
| Western Stima | Kakamega | Bukhungu Stadium | 5,000 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Tusker (C, Q) | 30 | 17 | 10 | 3 | 40 | 25 | +15 | 61 | Qualification to 2017 CAF Champions League |
| 2 | Gor Mahia | 30 | 15 | 12 | 3 | 35 | 14 | +21 | 54 | |
| 3 | Ulinzi Stars (Q) | 30 | 11 | 13 | 6 | 35 | 25 | +10 | 46 | Qualification to 2017 CAF Confederation Cup |
| 4 | Posta Rangers | 30 | 10 | 15 | 5 | 22 | 15 | +7 | 45 | |
| 5 | Chemelil Sugar | 30 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 24 | 24 | 0 | 45 | |
| 6 | Western Stima | 30 | 10 | 14 | 6 | 32 | 24 | +8 | 44 | |
| 7 | Mathare United | 30 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 33 | 29 | +4 | 44 | |
| 8 | Kakamega Homeboyz | 30 | 10 | 12 | 8 | 27 | 25 | +2 | 42 | |
| 9 | Sony Sugar | 30 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 23 | 21 | +2 | 39 | |
| 10 | Muhoroni Youth | 30 | 10 | 8 | 12 | 26 | 32 | −6 | 38 | |
| 11 | Bandari | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 28 | 31 | −3 | 37 | |
| 12 | Thika United | 30 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 24 | 32 | −8 | 34 | |
| 13 | A.F.C. Leopards | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 32 | 38 | −6 | 30 | |
| 14 | Sofapaka | 30 | 7 | 5 | 18 | 34 | 40 | −6 | 26 | |
| 15 | Ushuru (R) | 30 | 5 | 11 | 14 | 24 | 42 | −18 | 26 | Relegation to National Super League |
| 16 | Nairobi City Stars (R) | 30 | 3 | 10 | 17 | 17 | 39 | −22 | 19 | Relegation to National Super League |

* 1 2 On 26 May 2016 (matchday 15), A.F.C. Leopards and Gor Mahia were deducted 3 points each for hooliganism involved in their matches at home against Ulinzi Stars and away at Tusker, respectively.
* ↑ Ulinzi Stars qualified for the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup as runners-up of the 2016 FKF President's Cup, which was won by league champions Tusker.

### Positions by round

The table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. For example, if a match is scheduled for matchday 13, but then postponed and played between days 16 and 17, it will be added to the standings for day 16.

| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Tusker | 4 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Gor Mahia | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Ulinzi Stars | 12 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
| Posta Rangers | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 4 |
| Chemelil Sugar | 9 | 14 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| Western Stima | 14 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
| Mathare United | 8 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| Kakamega Homeboyz | 3 | 8 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
| SoNy Sugar | 11 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 |
| Muhoroni Youth | 16 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 10 |
| Bandari | 5 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 11 |
| Thika United | 13 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| A.F.C. Leopards | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 |
| Sofapaka | 1 | 6 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 14 |
| Ushuru | 15 | 16 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 |
| Nairobi City Stars | 6 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 |

* Leader
* Relegation to the 2017 Kenyan National Super League

## Results

| Home \ Away | AFC | BND | CHM | GOR | KHB | MAU | MHY | NCS | PRN | SOF | SNY | THU | TUS | ULS | UFC | WST |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| A.F.C. Leopards | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 0–1 |
| Bandari | 2–1 | | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 |
| Chemelil Sugar | 1–0 | 1–1 | | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 |
| Gor Mahia | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 |
| Kakamega Homeboyz | 4–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–3 | | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 |
| Mathare United | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–2 |
| Muhoroni Youth | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 |
| Nairobi City Stars | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–1 | | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 |
| Posta Rangers | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–1 |
| Sofapaka | 3–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–5 | 2–1 | 5–0 | 0–1 | | 0–1 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 |
| SoNy Sugar | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 |
| Thika United | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 |
| Tusker | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | | 0–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 |
| Ulinzi Stars | 2–2 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | | 3–2 | 1–1 |
| Ushuru | 1–1 | 0–4 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | | 0–4 |
| Western Stima | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–3 | |

* ↑ The match was called off in the 80th minute after A.F.C. Leopards fans protested a penalty awarded to Ulinzi Stars by the referee. The league awarded Ulinzi Stars a 2–0 win and 3 points.

## Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | John Makwatta | Ulinzi Stars | 18 |
| 2 | Kepha Aswani | Leopards | 14 |
| 3 | Wycliffe Ochomo | Muhoroni Youth | 12 |
| 4 | Jacques Tuyisenge | Gor Mahia | 10 |
| 5 | Whyvonne Isuza | Mathare United | 8 |
| 6 | Fredrick Shimonyo | Western Stima | 7 |
| 6 | Obadiah Ndege | Mathare United | 7 |
| 8 | Amon Asembeka | Sony Sugar | 6 |
| 8 | Michael Khamati | Tusker | 6 |
| 8 | Anthony "Muki" Kimani | Bandari | 6 |
| 8 | David King'atua | Bandari | 6 |
| 8 | Eugene Mukangula | Thika United | 6 |
| 8 | Ekaliana Ndolo | Tusker | 6 |
| 8 | George Odhiambo | Gor Mahia | 6 |
| 8 | Timothy Otieno | Posta Rangers | 6 |

### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Score | Date |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| John Makwatta | Ulinzi Stars | Ushuru | 3-2 | 24 July 2016 |
